


Rogue One - Five Knights

by Yourheartstillworks



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Episode VIII
Genre: Because the evidence is so obvious that they have to be the knights, But maybe a little happy, Do not click unless you've seen Rogue One, F/M, M/M, Major Spoilers, Multi, So I made assumptions, Spoilers, Stuff to do with Knights of Ren, You will not be happy, about the force, and how when the team died they became one with the force, and that's why sidious was able to bring them back, because we've never seen anyone being brought back from the dead, lets do it, not me, so I wrote this, so who knows how it works?, warning, yeah - Freeform, you know
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2017-03-01
Packaged: 2018-09-11 07:46:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8970187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yourheartstillworks/pseuds/Yourheartstillworks
Summary: The power to bring a person back from the dead... a feature only one person in the galaxy has. And he does have uses for those he brings back. Someone brave, someone strong, someone loyal, someone smart, and someone rebellious. He needs them to complete something he should have done years and years ago. And now that he knows humans can be successfully frozen in carbonite, he'll have what he needs even in the future.





	1. He was there

Her eyes open, seeing only white. They close again, letting the comfort of darkness overtake her. Her dizziness grows as she tries to open her eyes again. The bright light around her burns, but she still pushes her eyes open. Then the feeling of fear comes, as Jyn realizes she doesn’t know where she is. 

She jolts up out of the bed, looking around frantically. She's in some sort of hospital room. But how? She remembers the rebel fleet had left as soon as the plans were transmitted. And this didn't look like the rebel base. She throws her feet over the side of the bed, ignoring the argument from the cold floor and getting up.  A large curtain hangs beside the bed, and she can only assume that there is another patient on the other side.

Carefully, she brings a hand to it. She moves it as quietly as she can. Her hand fumbles as she catches sight of the person on the other side. It’s Bodhi. He’s asleep, and his skin is slightly red and bubbled like he’s been burnt. She slowly approaches his bedside, shaking him. He doesn’t wake. But he breaths, and she is relieved. 

And then another worry catches her. Cassian. He was on the beach with her. She looks past Bodhi, more curtains. She runs around the bed and shoves it out of the way, not even trying to be quiet this time. She feels her heart sink as she see’s that it’s not Cassian. Baze lays on the bed, sleeping soundly. She wonders why, how he could possibly be asleep right now? She puts a hand on his shoulder and shakes him, now taking notice that he has the same burn marks as Bohdi did. She has more luck in waking him, as almost as soon as her hand touches him, he jumps. He looks around at the room, and then to Jyn. “How?” He asks, hoarsely. 

Jyn shakes her head. “I don’t know.” She looks past his bed. There are no more curtains, only a large door. It’s metal and looks to have a code. She looks back to Baze, “I need to find Cassian.”

“He’s not here?” Baze asks, he slowly sits up and looks past Jyn. He gets out of the hospital bed and turns over to the door. “Chirrut must be with him, wherever he is.”

“We’ll find them,” Jyn states. Although she’s not sure. _Hope_ , she thinks to herself, _he’d want me to hope._ “We need to get out.” 

She and Baze go to the door, Jyn immediately starts messing with the keypad. Then, without warning, the sliding door shifts open loudly. The two share a concerned look. Jyn barley had time to do anything, it wasn’t her that opened the door. 

Before he can go anywhere, Jyn stops Baze. “You should stay with Bodhi. If there _is_ something bad out there, there isn’t any reason for both of us to die.” 

Baze gives her an unsure look, glancing back at Bodhi. “If you find them...”

“I will,” Jyn reassures him, nodding. She slips through the door, quietly and quickly. The hallway is long and empty, not even any doors. Except for one, at the very end. She looks behind her and then gets faster. She plans to stop just before the door, to look through the window. But seconds before she gets to the door, it slides open with ease. She stops in her tracks.

Body crouched down low, Jyn slips through. She presses herself against the nearest wall, observing the room she’s found herself in. It’s big, and there’s a large window directly across from her. On all sides of the room are more doors, which she can only assume are leading to more long hallways. But the room is empty, and she lets her guard down. She stands up straight and makes the decision to go to the window, see what kind of planet they’re on. Her footsteps echo through the room as she makes her way to the window. Looking out, all she see’s are sharp rocks. They stick up out of the ground, threatening anyone who tries to make an escape. She tries her best to find some sort of bridge. There has to be some way to get out.

A door opens somewhere, and Jyn throws herself down to avoid being caught. She ducks behind a nearby pillar, pressing her back up against it and calming her breathing. She listens to people walk, slowly. The trooper boots hitting the marble floor is a familiar sound, it almost makes her shudder. But then, she hears others walking behind them. Prisoners. 

She’s not sure, but she can only hope that Cassian is one of them. There’s almost no hesitation when Jyn jumps out from behind the pillar and runs are the troopers. She focuses in on them and strikes. There’s only two of them, so they’re down in a matter of seconds. Jyn takes a deep breath as her leg screams in protest. She backs up and looks to the prisoners. Her heartbeat quickens as she see’s that, indeed, Cassian is one of them. He stares at her in disbelief, mouth hung open. Chirrut stands next to him, a big smile plastered onto his face. 

Jyn pauses and then runs to Cassian, quickly removing his restraints. As soon as his hands are free, he wraps his arms around her. She clutches onto him like she did on the beach. “I was... I’m so glad...” 

“I know,” Cassian whispers and squeezes her. “Me too.” 

They stay like that for a moment, just holding onto each other. Jyn doesn’t know how this is happening, how they are alive. But in this moment, she doesn’t care about the how. She cares that he’s okay and that Chirrut is okay, and all of them are okay. Because they were good people, and she had wanted the chance to know them better. She’d wanted the chance to call them close friends. She wanted to chance to fall in love with someone, with Cassian. And no matter how it was happening, she was going to get that chance. He was too. And that was worth everything.

Chirrut coughs and the couple finally separates. Jyn feels slightly embarrassed, but she can’t let herself focus on that. Chirrut smiles at the both of them, and although he cannot see, he knows- no, he feels- what just happened between the two. His smile fades and he turns his head towards Jyn. “Baze,” He says.

“Alive,” Jyn replies. “So is Bohdi. They’re this way.” She turns to go, but then quickly turns back and strips the troopers of their weapons. She hands the other blaster to Cassian. He stares at it for a second and smiles. She raises an eyebrow, watching him.

“Trust goes both ways,” He mutters, recalling what Jyn had said to him that first day they’d met.

Jyn smiles back and turns back to the door. “This way.” She watches as Cassian tries to lead Chirrut and as Chirrut smacks his hand away and walks by himself through the door. “All the way down.” 

Jyn’s shoulder throbs and her leg aches. She clenches her jaw, trying to ignore the pain. Cassian walks beside her, sort of limping as he goes. But he doesn’t seem bothered by it. His hand brushes over hers, and she smiles.

For some reason, the walk down that hallway seems even longer than it did before. Jyn is thankful for this, as it gives them time to adjust to being here. The feeling of Cassian’s hand, the sound of his calm breathing, the sight of Chirrut trying to stay calm in the absence of Baze. It all just seems so real, and so amazing. Her anxiety is strangely low, even though she just fought off several stormtroopers holding her friends captive. The confusion seems to overtake anxiety. They were in a medical room of some sort, after all. The Empire saved them, took care of them, and made sure they didn’t die. Why would they do that?

When the group enters the room, Chirrut’s first reaction is to wrap his arms around Baze. Jyn watches them and smiles. The way they hold each other looks undeniably as if they’re a married couple. Bodhi now sits awake, on the very edge of his bed. He rubs his temples and keeps his eyes shut tight. Jyn and Cassian both go to him.

“I’m glad you’re awake,” Jyn says. Bodhi doesn’t reply, still sitting and rubbing his temple, as if trying to wrap his mind around something. He opens his eyes slightly and looks up at Jyn. She looks back at him, confused.

“I died, Jyn.” He sits up. “I saw the bomb, I... I felt everything go away.”

“If you died, you wouldn’t be here.” Cassian shakes his head, crossing his arms in disbelief. 

“No, he tells the truth,” Baze turns around to face them. “Chirrut died. I remember it.”

Jyn looks to Baze, and then to Chirrut. Chirrut nods as well, giving confirmation. Jyn looks back to Cassian, concern etched on her features. She tries to remember what happened after the transmission. She remembers sending the plans. She remembers the elevator. She remembers seeing the Death Star approach. She remembers holding Cassian’s hand. She remembers a bright light. But that’s all.

And then the realization dawns on her. The light wasn’t just a light. It was the end, her and Cassian’s end. But then- why? They were all dead, they all died. So why? How?

She then shakes her head. She doesn’t care that they died, she cares that they’re alive, no matter the unsettling confusion of ‘how’. “Never mind _why_. We’re here, that’s what counts. Now we need to get off of this rock.”


	2. Escape plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jyn meets someone and faces a new challenge.

Jyn doesn’t waste any time trying to get out. She’s running so fast, she almost forgets that her friends are injured. But she knows that it could get worse. After all, they were in the hands of the Empire now. She doesn’t know how long it’s been, it could be days, even weeks. She stops in the main hall, taking a breath. 

“You all should wait here,” She tells them and turns. She takes a blaster from the other trooper and tosses it to Baze. She glances at Cassian. “There’s too many doors. I’ll find the exit and come back for you.”

“You shouldn’t go alone.” Cassian takes a step towards her, worry etched onto his bruised face. 

Jyn shakes her head, putting a hand up to stop him. “You’re in no condition to come.” She gestures to his leg, and ribs. She can see the struggle in every movement he makes. If they were to run into any more troopers, he wouldn’t be able to fight.

“Neither are you.” Cassian steps forward again, ignoring her warning. Jyn purses her lips and shakes her head again. His shoulders slump and he frowns in defeat.

Jyn glances at the others and takes a deep breath. She has to stand on her toes a bit, but she finds it worth it. In a quick second, she lands a small peck on Cassian’s cheek. And in the next second, she’s through one of the doors. Cassian watches her go, a deep blush creeping onto his face. 

Baze chuckles and turns to Chirrut, who tilts his head as if asking what happened. “She kissed him,” Baze explains, deep voice still a bit croaky. Chirrut raises his eyebrows and smiles, slowly nodding.

“It’s about time,” He says, laughter carrying itself through his words. 

Cassian blinks, snapping out of his haze. He turns, trying his best to scowl, to hide the immense joy in light of the situation they are in. “Enough.” He looks at Baze. “Be ready with that blaster if any more stormtroopers come through.”

Chirrut’s smile does not falter as he guides himself to a nearby pillar. He turns and presses his back to it, sliding down. Baze watches him. He readies the blaster, keeping a close eye on all the doors while still making sure Chirrut is okay.

 

\--

 

Jyn hopes as she makes her way down the hallway, that his door will lead to the outside. If only they were that lucky. She continues until she reaches a large doorway. For a second, the weight on her heart lifts as she thinks that this could be it. But it quickly drops again as she realizes that it’s just another one of those big rooms. In it, right by a large window is a large throne-like chair. 

Her eyebrows crease in confusion until she realizes where they are. She turns around, seeing no other doors in this area. She jumps back in fear as she catches sight of a figure in the corner. 

“Do not be afraid, dear child. You are not a prisoner here,” The figure speaks, and it gives Jyn chills. Because she recognizes it, it is unmistakable who this is. 

The Emperor. Jyn steps back, lips pressed together in a hard line. She glares, and her grip tightens on the blaster she carries at her side. He seems to chuckle, taking a few steps towards her. She steps further back as he approaches. “There’s no need for that, youngling.” He gestures to the blaster. 

“What are we doing here?” Asks Jyn, quickly and strongly. Her hands tremble, she is afraid, but she dares not let it show through her voice. She watches him, closely. She can barely make out half of his face under his cloak. The Emperor folds his hands in front of him and smiles. She shudders at the sight.

“You and your friends were very brave. It has been a long time since I’ve seen such bravery.” He turns to the side, just slightly, and starts to walk towards the throne. 

“That’s not an answer.” Jyn watches him like a hawk. She watches every single movement he makes as he walks. He adjusts the cloak over his head, and slowly sits down on the large throne.

“I decided you were more useful alive. I need you.” He smiles again, and Jyn is just as uncomfortable as the time before.

“You want us to work for you? After what we did  _ against  _ the Empire-”

He interrupts her, putting a hand up to stop her. “Let me share with you some interesting facts, child. The rebellion kidnaps you and sends you after the man who they plan to kill anyway. They bomb him, letting him die in his daughter's arms.” He stands once more, and takes a few slow steps towards Jyn, “They force a man to fight for them from the age of six years old, making him do things a child should never do. They make him kill, and they do not let him ask questions.”

He gets closer, and Jyn finds herself listening to his words too closely. “They pretend to be grateful for information from a very brave man and ignore his presence as soon as the information is theirs. They watch as a planet is destroyed, and they do nothing to save those people from death. They let five brave people throw their lives away, for plans that they lose hours later. They betrayed you.”

“What do you mean _ lost? _ ” Jyn asks through clenched teeth. She feels tears welling up but refuses to let them spill. 

“That work- that precious thing you sacrificed your lives for- they’ve lost it.” Jyn turns away from him, not able to hold back any longer. How could they let that happen? How could they abandon them? “I am the one who brought you back, young one. You and your friends. You are meant for something far greater.”

Jyn takes a deep breath, and it is then that she realizes that her grip on the blaster has not softened. She spins around and shoots, but the Emperor is not behind her. The bolt hits the large window, shattering it. She covers her face and steps back. Once the glass is done falling, Jyn looks around the room. He is nowhere to be found. She wipes her cheeks and turns back. Now they really have to find a way out.

As she runs towards the doorway, she starts to hear the unmistakeable sound of blaster fire. She goes faster, as fast as she can on her still injured leg. She readies her own blaster. The firing stops as quickly as it started, and that, in turn, makes Jyn stop running. She doesn’t lower her blaster.

Slowly, she goes towards the door at the end of the hallway. She presses herself up against it, thankful that it doesn’t slide open on its own. She hears talking, but she can’t make out exactly who. She stands on her toes and looks through the window, seeing Cassian standing where he was when she left. She sees Bodhi, just next to him. They’re both staring at something, Cassian full of anger and Bodhi full of fear. Jyn knows what they’re looking at. She knows what he is going to say to them, and she knows she’s not going to let him finish. 

She goes to open the door, but her hand is shocked as soon as it touches the control pad. She holds it against her chest, deciding to just shoot the thing. She steps back and points the blaster, but when she pulls the trigger nothing happens. She tries again, and again,  and again until her finger starts to ache. It’s loaded, she knows it’s loaded. Why would a stormtrooper be going around with an unloaded blaster?

She throws the thing aside, giving up, and bangs her hands on the door. She gets one good hit before the door sends a large bolt of electricity through her body. Her body is thrown back and slides a little on the floor. She tries to move, but the pain is nearly unbearable. Her mind moves in different directions as she tries to make out her situation. She’s never seen doors that electrocute people before. She never wants to see them again. She groans in pain, sitting up slowly. She clenches her fists and gets up, running back to the door with all the force she can muster. She hits it again, harder. She’s shocked again, but she knows that Cassian has to have heard it that time. She’s sent back, and she hits her head on the cold floor. It doesn’t feel bad enough to be bleeding, maybe just a huge bump.

Taking another deep breath, she tries to sit up. But when that fails, she decides to go a different route. She gathers all the strength she has, and yells. She yells Cassian’s name, as loud as she can. She starts to see spots, but she holds together. The pain is so much, she can’t handle it. She now feels tears streaming down her cheeks. A defining ring fills her ears, and she knows she cannot hold on much longer. She’s going to pass out. She tries her voice again, but she can’t muster enough strength. She doesn’t try to move because she knows it’s worthless. She twitches and the spots start to grow and grow.

And she thinks she hears a voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! I had no idea this was going to get such a positive feedback! I'm really glad you guys like it!


	3. Ocean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rebellion did kill her father, they did abandon them on Scarif. And now she knows that they lost the plans. They let them slip away.

 

“Jyn…”

It sounds so far away. So so far. 

“Jyn… Jyn…”

Muffled. Like someone yelling into a pillow. Like it is enveloped in cotton. Like, perhaps, it is underwater. Or maybe it is  _ Jyn  _ that is underwater. She is floating further and further down and someone is trying to save her. They yell, but it is too muffled for her to understand. She can hear her name, but she can’t tell if they are saying anything else. She hears another voice with it, who is it? 

“Jyn…!”

It seems to be getting louder. Louder but still far. Far away, like the beach from her house. But they still went sometimes. Galen would take her to the water. He would tell her stories. Lyra- her mother- would come along and listen, or sometimes she would even tell stories of her own.

“JYN!”

She jerks, eyes snapping open. It takes her a moment to adjust to the light around her. She blinks the spots away and sees Cassian directly over her. She then realizes that she’s laying in his lap. He sighs in relief and smiles. “Hey, you’re okay…”

“The Emperor…”

“He’s gone.” Cassian glances upwards and then back to Jyn. “I saw you in the window when you hit the door.”

Jyn presses her lips into a hard line and struggles to sit up. Cassian helps her, supporting her head. She doesn’t try to fight it, instead she lets him help her like she helped him on the beach. 

The beach. Suddenly, all the things the Emperor had said come flooding back into her pounding head. She knows that he’s not wrong about any of it. The rebellion  _ did _ kill her father, they _ did _ abandon them on Scarif. And now she knows that they lost the plans. They let them slip away. She clenches her jaw in frustration, which Cassian must take as pain because his facial expression shifts instantly. She shakes her head. “It’s just… they lost them, Cassian.”

“I know.” Cassian looks down for a moment, then back up to her. “But that doesn’t mean they are gone forever.”

“It  _ does _ , though,” Says Jyn, bringing a hand up to rub her eyes. She knows they wouldn’t go after them. Why would they? They didn’t go after the plans before, so why now? They had given up their lives to save the rebellion. And the rebellion didn’t seem to care. She knows that they will forget their names, and forget what they’ve done.

“But…” Bodhi speaks up, and Jyn realizes that all she’s been looking at is Cassian. She tries not to be so surprised to her other friend's presence, straightening her back and looking at him. “I-If… I mean, he didn’t say that the Empire got the plans  _ back _ … so… there’s still hope.”

Hope. The word sounds almost bitter in Jyn's ears now. She did have hope at one point. Hope that the rebellion would come to their rescue on Scarif, that they would realize the mistake they made. Hope that Cassian would be okay as he fell, and as she almost fell after him. But hope was nothing to her. She lost it. “Maybe. But that doesn’t matter. There’s no way out of here. Not with doors that electrocute people.”

She thinks for a long moment, knowing that her friends will not like what she has to say. “Why leave?” She feels Cassian’s glare and understands it. “We’re alive, we’re safe here.”

“Jyn, that’s ridiculous and you know it.” Cassian leans into her. His voice is soft, not angry. She stares at the ground. There wasn’t any way for them to escape. They were being watched over by the Emperor. A Sith Lord. 

“I know… but we’re not getting out of here. There wasn’t a way out. He would stop us.”

The silence afterward assures Jyn that they know she’s right. It isn’t a good option, in fact, it is a horrible option. But it’s  the only option. She doesn’t know what the Emperor has in mind for the group, but he did bring them back to life. He wasn’t going to hurt them. And as long as she knew that, she knew they had a chance. The rebellion can’t save them now, they wouldn’t know to save them anyway. But here, at least they are safe. Especially so if they do what the Emperor wants. Jyn had been a slave at one point, she knows the situation they’re in. If they don’t do what is asked of them, they probably would end up dead again. This time for good. “It’s all we can do… We just have to play along. We just have to survive. If we do what he asks…” She trails off.

Cassian sighs, rubbing his temples. He looks at her, eyebrows creased. He knows she’s right. She can tell that. But he hates it. He shakes his head and stands up. “If it’s all we can do, then we do it.”

With confirmation from both of them, Bodhi nods. “What could he possibly want from us? It’s not like we have a whole lot of information- I mean… aside from Cassian…”

“No… It’s not for information. It’s for something else. They would have already been working information from us if it were.” Cassian helps Jyn up, letting her lean against him. She can’t help but relax against him and feel his warmth. Then the words roll over her skull, and she knows she shouldn’t be thinking about it, but it doesn’t go away.  _ We have time now. _

“Cassian is right,” She says as she tries not to put her entire weight on him. “Obviously he wants us to turn against the rebellion.” Which Jyn already had, from the very beginning she was only working with them for one simple reason. For her freedom. And finding the plans was never about the rebellion. It was always about her father.  _ It needs to be destroyed,  _ he says weakly.  

“It’s because of Scarif,” comes Chirrut’s voice in the doorway. He leans against its frame, seemingly struggling to stay standing. “He finds us brave for our actions, therefore he wants to use us.”

“Use us? For what?” Bodhi chimes, anxiety creeping its way into his voice. Jyn can hear it in the quiver. 

The monk lightly throws his shoulder, a move that looks like a lazy shrug. Jyn gulps and brings herself to push off of Cassian. She feels cold as her body leaves him, and wants to lean back to him. But then she can feel his hand on her back, helping keep her steady, and the warmth returns and the breath she didn’t realize she was holding releases through her nose. “So? We play along. We  _ survive. _ ” She repeats, looking them over. 

Baze comes from behind Chirrut, blaster held tightly in his hands. He nods at Jyn, and then at Cassian.

And Jyn knows they can do this for as long as it needs to be done. The Emperor won’t live forever, she knows this. With the death of him will come the end of the rebellion, and perhaps she and Cassian will have even more time. If she escapes, she wants to escape with him. With Cassian. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this chapter is so short...adfghjkl


	4. (Jyn-Cassian)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He followed Jyn. They all did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Doing switching POV so that we can get more from this story and our characters. Enjoy!

“Jyn…”

It sounds so far away. So so far. 

“Jyn… Jyn…”

Muffled. Like someone yelling into a pillow. Like it is enveloped in cotton. Like, perhaps, it is underwater. Or maybe it is  _ Jyn  _ that is underwater. She is floating further and further down and someone is trying to save her. They yell, but it is too muffled for her to understand. She can hear her name, but she can’t tell if they are saying anything else. She hears another voice with it, who is it? 

“Jyn…!”

It seems to be getting louder. Louder but still far. Far away, like the beach from her house. But they still went sometimes. Galen would take her to the water. He would tell her stories. Lyra- her mother- would come along and listen, or sometimes she would even tell stories of her own.

“JYN!”

She jerks, eyes snapping open. It takes her a moment to adjust to the light around her. She blinks the spots away and sees Cassian directly over her. She then realizes that she’s laying in his lap. He sighs in relief and smiles. “Hey, you’re okay…”

“The Emperor…”

“He’s gone.” Cassian glances upwards and then back to Jyn. “I saw you in the window when you hit the door.”

Jyn presses her lips into a hard line and struggles to sit up. Cassian helps her, supporting her head. She doesn’t try to fight it, instead letting him help her like she helped him on the beach. 

The beach. Suddenly, all the things the Emperor had said come flooding back into her pounding head. She knows that he’s not wrong about any of it. The rebellion  _ did _ kill her father, they _ did _ abandon them on Scarif. And now she knows that they lost the plans. They let them slip away. She clenches her jaw in frustration, which Cassian must take as pain because his facial expression shifts instantly. She shakes her head. “It’s just… they lost them, Cassian.”

“I know.” Cassian looks down for a moment, then back up to her. “But that doesn’t mean they are gone forever.”

“It  _ does _ , though,” Says Jyn, bringing a hand up to rub her eyes. She knows they wouldn’t go after them. Why would they? They didn’t go after the plans before, so why now? They had given up their lives to save the rebellion. And the rebellion didn’t seem to care. She knows that they will forget their names, and forget what they’ve done.

“But…” Bodhi speaks up, and Jyn realizes that all she’s been looking at is Cassian. She tries not to be so surprised to her other friends presence, straightening her back and looking at him. “I-If… I mean, he didn’t say that the Empire got the plans  _ back _ … so… there’s still hope.”

Hope. The word sounds almost bitter in Jyns ears now. She did have hope at one point. Hope that the rebellion would come to their rescue on Scarif, that they would realize the mistake they made. Hope that Cassian would be okay as he fell, and as she almost fell after him. But hope was nothing to her. She lost it. “Maybe. But that doesn’t matter. There’s no way out of here. Not with doors that electrocute people.”

She thinks for a long moment, knowing that her friends will not like what she has to say. “Why leave?” She feels Cassian’s glare and understands it. “We’re alive, we’re safe here.”

“Jyn, that’s ridiculous and you know it.” Cassian leans into her. His voice is soft, not angry. She stares at the ground. There wasn’t any way for them to escape. They were being watched over by the Emperor. A Sith Lord. 

“I know… but we’re not getting out of here. There wasn’t a way out. He would stop us.”

The silence afterwards assures Jyn that they know she’s right. It isn’t a good option, in fact it is a horrible option. But it’s  the only option. She doesn’t know what the Emperor has in mind for the group, but he did bring them back to life. He wasn’t going to hurt them. And as long as she knows that, she knows they have a chance. The rebellion can’t save them now, they wouldn’t know to save them anyway. But here, at least they are safe. Especially so if they do what the Emperor wants. Jyn had been a slave at one point, she knows the situation they’re in. If they don’t do what is asked of them, they probably would end up dead again. This time for good. “It’s all we can do… We just have to play along. We just have to survive. If we do what he asks…” She trails off.

Cassian sighs, rubbing his temples. He looks at her, eyebrows creased. He knows she’s right. She can tell that. But he hates it. He shakes his head and stands up. “If it’s all we can do, then we do it.”

With confirmation from both of them, Bodhi nods. “What could he possibly want from us? It’s not like we have a whole lot of information- I mean… aside from Cassian…”

“No… It’s not for information. It’s for something else. They would have already been working information from us if it were.” Cassian helps Jyn up, letting her lean against him. She can’t help but relax against him and feel his warmth. Then the words roll over her skull, and she knows she shouldn’t be thinking about it, but it doesn’t go away.  _ We have time now. _

“Cassian is right,” She says as she tries not to put her entire weight on him. “Obviously he wants us to turn against the rebellion.” Which Jyn already had, from the very beginning she was only working with them for one simple reason. For her freedom. And finding the plans was never about the rebellion. It was always about her father.  _ It needs to be destroyed,  _ he says weakly.  

“It’s because of Scarif,” comes Chirrut’s voice in the doorway. He leans against its frame, seemingly struggling to stay standing. “He finds us brave for our actions, therefore he wants to use us.”

“Use us? For what?” Bodhi chimes, anxiety creeping its way into his voice. Jyn can hear it in the quiver. 

The monk lightly throws his shoulder, a move that looks like a lazy shrug. Jyn gulps and brings herself to push off of Cassian. She feels cold as her body leaves his, and wants to lean back to him. But then she can feel his hand on her back, helping keep her steady, and the warmth returns and the breath she didn’t realize she was holding releases through her nose. “So? We play along. We  _ survive. _ ” She repeats, looking them over. 

Baze comes from behind Chirrut, blaster held tightly in his hands. He nods at Jyn, and then at Cassian.

And Jyn knows they can do this for as long as it needs to be done. The Emperor won’t live forever, she knows this. With the death of him will come the end of the Empire, and perhaps her and Cassian will have even more time. If she escapes, she wants to escape with him. 

 

\--

 

It’s when the ‘troopers come around for them that Cassian realizes how very  _ deep  _ they are. The ‘troopers make no move to restrain them, they don’t try to take away their weapons. They simply guide the group out of the hallway and down another.  _ North,  _ Cassian remembers as they pass through the door. Through it is a large cavern of sorts, training equipment set up on all sides. 

 

Training dummies, weapons, targets- he pauses, having to blink- armour. He’s so focused that he nearly forgets Jyn standing directly beside him. Her hand brushes over his carefully, with gingerness Cassian didn’t know she  _ had.  _ He’d always seen a war in her eyes, excluding Eadu- when they had been cold and empty. There’s a particularly hard pang in his chest as he thinks about Galen. He thinks maybe that will never go away. The guilt. He hadn’t pulled the trigger- but he might as well have.  _ Might as well be a stormtrooper,  _ Jyn had said. 

 

She’s different now- he thinks as he looks down at her. She’s smaller. He can still see the war in her eyes, but it’s different somehow. It’s lighter. Cassian grabs her hand and squeezes it. The pain somehow makes its way back into his ribs. He ignores it- tries to at least. But Jyn- with war in her eyes- sees right past it. Her eyebrows crease with worry, but she stays silent and Cassian thanks her with a single look. 

 

The ‘troopers edge out of the room, Cassian assumes they've locked the door behind them. His ribs still hurt, ache, like he's pulled a muscle. He doesn't want to think about the pain Bodhi is in- or Baze. Chirrut seems to have recovered just fine- Cassian wonders if that’s the Force at work. His ribs ache- and he assumes Jyn is no better off. So he keeps her hand wrapped in his and finds a wall nearby.  _ Training can wait.  _ He sits down- slowly, carefully - Jyn sits next to him. Her lips are pressed- hard. She clenches her jaw, looks at him, looks away, looks back. Cassian wants to ask. He doesn't. 

 

He looks at Bodhi, picking at scabs on his hands. He watches as the other man pokes the training dummies- runs his hands over the armor- then a mask. He looks at Baze- who's trying to coax Chirrut into sitting down. The blind man refuses and messes with the weapons. 

 

Cassian finds himself looking back at Jyn. He wonders if that will ever change. On Jedha- he had tried to convince himself that Jyn was expendable. That he didn't need her. He did this- all the while running to find her, save her. Before that- after the assault. In the cold- he found himself worrying about Jyn. About whether or not she was cold. On Eadu- he'd gone back for her. He could have left her. He should have, probably. Then- he thinks- they wouldn't have gotten the plans. He followed Jyn. They all did. He wonders  _ why.  _

 

_ Because of her eyes.  _ Because he'd seen himself when he looked at her. He didn't need excuses with her- she understands. She understood after Eadu and she forgave him when even now he thinks he doesn't deserve that.  _ I've been in this fight since I was six-years-old.  _ He thinks- he doesn't deserve forgiveness. He thinks about Tivik- and about his sister who thought he was just  _ missing.  _ Cassian had shot him. 

  
He doesn't deserve forgiveness- yet he has received it. He thinks about that for a long time- about how Jyn had kissed him on the cheek before she had run off. Then he thinks- he wants to kiss her again. 


End file.
